Jerry Brown on Gun Control

Include semiautomatic pistols in unsafe handgun law

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a gun control measure eliminating an exemption for certain semiautomatic pistols from California's unsafe handgun law, Brown's office announced. Assembly Bill 1964 is designed to limit the exemption for single-shot pistols
from the state's unsafe handgun roster, excluding semiautomatic pistols altered to not fire in semiautomatic mode.

Gun control advocates argued the exemption allowed gun dealers to sell temporarily altered single-shot pistols to people who could
convert them back into semiautomatic weapons that do not comply with state safety requirements. The California Association of Federal Firearms Licensees, which opposed the bill, said it will "further narrow California's already onerous and overly
burdensome 'not unsafe' handgun roster and eliminate more firearms from the non-peace officer marketplace," according to a legislative analysis.

The bill passed the Legislature largely on partisan lines, with Democrats in support & Republicans opposed.

Pushed back against liberals on gun control

Brown has established himself as a moderating force in Sacramento, pushing back against liberals on issues such as gun control and business regulation, which, to some, suggests an effort to shed the kooky
Left Coast image of his first time as governor, more than 20 years ago, and craft a more centrist profile ahead of 2016.

Source: Los Angeles Times, "Politics Now: Brown 2016"
, Dec 17, 2013

Ban hunting with lead bullets; but detachable magazines OK

Brown approved 11 firearms measures that are designed to tighten controls on weapons and ammunition in California. The governor vetoed 7 gun-related bills, including one that would have outlawed semiautomatic rifles with detachable magazines, one that
would have allowed Oakland to create its own registry of gun owners, and another that would have essentially prevented the Cow Palace from hosting gun shows. The 18 firearms-related bills on the governor's desk were crafted in the wake of December's
Newtown CT elementary school massacre. Among the gun-related bills signed by the governor:

AB711 bans hunting with lead bullets

SB683 will require people who buy rifles and shotguns to first pass a written firearm safety test

AB170 requires
assault weapon permits to be issued to individuals, rather than to corporations or other groups.

AB1131 extends from 6 months to 5 years the period during which a person who threatens violence is prohibited from purchasing a firearm.